This invention pertains to a telescoping slide rail assembly for mounting components within a telecommunications rack, and more particularly, to a latching mechanism and alignment device used in connection with the telescoping slide assembly for use in the telecommunications industry.
There are numerous prior art telescoping slide rail devices for mounting telecommunications equipment and other various components. One major disadvantage of these prior art telescoping slide rail assemblies is that the latching mechanisms which orient and connect the intermediate slide rail to the stationary slide rail in a fully extended position are complex in design and relatively expensive to manufacture and install.
Another major disadvantage of these prior art telescoping slide rail assemblies is that manufacturing and assembly tolerances of the intermediate slide rail and the mounting slide rail are comparatively large and permit unwanted relative movement therebetween. As a result, there is a large tolerance variance between adjacent, parallel, offset pairs of telescoping slide assemblies. Consequently, the mounting slide rail is loosely disposed within the intermediate slide rail. Unwanted movement causes contact between the intermediate and mounting slide rails and friction therebetween is increased.
Therefore, there is a need for a latching mechanism which is inexpensive, easy to manufacture and install and simple and reliable to operate. There is also a further need for an improved alignment device which orients the slide rails, minimizes friction between the sliding rails and compensates for manufacturing tolerances.